Education reporter

A recent fundraiser yielded about $315,000 for Downtown Academy, a school now in its first year in downtown Athens.

The donations will fund scholarships for two full classes of students and allow Downtown Academy to add another grade – second grade – next school year, the school announced.

Of the $315,000, most came in the form of a $200,000 check from Zaxby Franchising of Oconee County, which helped get the school started. The company donated $70,000 to the school in 2012.

Twenty students started kindergarten or first grade classes in August in Downtown Academy, launched by Downtown Ministries, a nonprofit organization affiliated with Redeemer Presbyterian Church.

The school plans to add a grade per year up through fifth grade, and also to add classes in the future for 3- and 4-year-olds.

Nearly 340 people came to Downtown Academy’s fundraiser this month.

“The generous donations provided by Zaxby’s and area business leaders were beyond our expectations and have set a precedent for years to come,” said Downtown Academy Head of School Patrick Ennis in a press release.

The school aims to attract students from within the Athens perimeter, and school officials emphasize that they intend not only to give students academic and character skills that will help them succeed as they enter the public school system, but plan to keep parents involved in their children’s school careers.

On that first day of classes in August, just one of the 20 students was a girl. That’s because much of the student recruiting was done through a Downtown Ministries youth football program with boys 4 to 12, school officials speculated at the time.